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ARD on show at Cité de l’Espace

5 June 2002

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23 May 2002 - ARD exhibition in Toulouse

On 23 May 2002 the ARD vehicle will be transported to La Cite de l'Espace in Toulouse for a 2-year exhibition. ARD was launched by an Ariane 5 on 21 October 1998. Engineers analysing data from its sub-orbital flight reported that all the capsule's systems had performed well and according to expectations. ARD reached an altitude of 830 km and splashed down to within 4.9 km of its target point in the Pacific Ocean between the Marquises and Hawaii after one hour and 41 minutes. Although not strictly a prototype of a possible future European Crew Transport Vehicle (CTV), which could fly to and from the International Space Station, ARD is a major step towards providing greater confidence in Europe's capabilities in reentry technologies for use not only in the frame of crew and equipment transport but also for future re-usable launchers.

Credits: ESA

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ESA's Atmospheric Reentry Demonstrator (ARD) - seen here being prepared for flight at Aerospatiale's Bordeaux site - was launched into space and then returned to Earth to test technologies required to safely guide a vehicle through the Earth's fiery atmosphere and back to Earth. It was launched 21 October 1998, by Ariane 5 on Flight 503 from Kourou, French Guiana. Once it has been injected into orbit, it began its descent, entering the upper atmosphere at a velocity of more than 27 000 km/h. Fifteen minutes later, it splashed down in the Pacific Ocean. It was equipped with leading-edge technology that allowed its flight and landing to be performed with unequalled precision.

Credits: ESA-S. Corvaja

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The Atmospheric Re-entry Demonstrator (ARD) was released by an Ariane 5 on 21 October 1998. Engineers analysing data from its sub-orbital flight reported that all the capsule's systems had performed well and according to expectations. ARD reached an altitude of 830 km and splashed down to within 4.9 km of its target point in the Pacific Ocean between the Marquises and Hawaii after one hour and 41 minutes. Although not strictly a prototype of a possible future European Crew Transport Vehicle (CTV), which could fly to and from the International Space Station, ARD is a major step towards providing greater confidence in Europe's capabilities in reentry technologies for use not only in the frame of crew and equipment transport but also for future re-usable launchers.

Credits: ESA - D.Ducros